WE ARE OPEN:
MON TO SAT : 9:00AM TO 9:00PM
SUN: 12:00PM TO 6:00PM
Carmel Road Pinot Noir Monterey County California 2020 (750ml)
Price: $19.99
Sale Price: $9.99
...showcases notes of red berry, warm spice and earth tones with a pronounced minerality...
| Producer | Carmel Road Pinot Noir Monterey County California |
 | |
| Country | United States |
| |
| Region | California |
| |
| Subregion | Monterey County |
| |
| Varietal | 100% Pinot Noir |
| |
| Vintage | 2020 |
| |
| Sku | 30780 |
| |
| Size | 750ml |
| |
|
Carmel Road produces four varietals: Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc and a limited production Cabernet Sauvignon. The Pinot Noir and Chardonnay thrive in areas where the temperature doesn’t get too hot during the day and falls off rapidly at night. In fact, Monterey’s weather would be too hot for these cool-climate grape varieties were it not for the maritime influence from Monterey Bay. The Cabernet Sauvignon and Sauvignon Blanc are sourced from carefully selected vineyards spread across California’s finest wine growing regions. In contrast to the cooler Monterey region, these wines excel in warmer days and nights that allow for the development of complex flavors create and refined elegance.
Carmel Road Pinot Noir
Monterey County California 2020
Our winery is nestled in the pristine foothills of Monterey County. Our coastal vineyards are California Certified Sustainable and thrive in the daily exposure of fog, sun and the brisk cooling winds from the Pacific Ocean. This textured Pinot Noir showcases notes of red berry, warm spice and earth tones with a pronounced minerality that reflects this cool coastal growing region
The slightest differences in clonal composition and terroir can have a terrific impact on Monterey Pinot Noir, yet the essentials remain. The wines are bright, crisp and silky, with a perfumed fragrance leading to complex flavors ranging from cherry pie filling to rhubarbs, pomegranates and dusty brown spices, all accented by smoky oak.
Monterey Influence
Our wines are influenced by the nearby Pacific.
Directly off the coast of Monterey is an underwater gorge more vast
than Arizona’s Grand Canyon, a rift dubbed "The Blue Grand Canyon."
These are cold waters, nourished by ocean currents that sweep down out of the Gulf of Alaska. Average temperature year-round hovers near 50 degrees. As is the case all along the California coast, the prevailing winds are from the west/northwest, meaning chilly, moisture-laden maritime air is funneled inland from the sea. No mountains hinder the flow of air from Monterey Bay to the Carmel Road vineyards, and the maritime influence shows itself most dramatically in the form of brisk winds.
In the early to mid-afternoon, the coastal breeze starts to blow. By late afternoon, the temperature can drop by 15 degrees, and the wind can be so fierce it hinders photosynthesis. Come nighttime, temperatures fall to the 50s and the wind still howls. But by dawn, all is still. The wind is calm, the vineyards shrouded in fog and low clouds obscure the mountains. Then, by late morning, the ancient cycle begins again. Grapes develop beautiful complexity in this coastal weather. The heat of the day ripens them, while the chill of night refreshes them, and preserves the natural fruit acidity that wine needs for balance.
Soils are almost as important in establishing wine quality. While Monterey’s soils are as diverse as those of the rest of the California coast, thanks to the San Andreas Fault System whose earthquakes over the millennia have shaken everything up, the prime requirement of great wine grape soils is that they be well-drained. An old saying claims, grapevines don’t like “to get their feet wet.” The best Monterey vineyards sit on well-drained soils, either because they’re on mountainsides, or because the soils are constituted of deep, porous sands and gravels through which rainfall drains out to the water table below. This promotes more flavor and textural intensity in the fruit.
Carmel Road Pinot Noir Monterey County California Description
Carmel Road Winery
Where vines meet ocean winds. Where the foothills meet the valley.
Where a tranquil state of mind meets artisan style. This is Carmel Road Winery.
Inland from Monterey’s rugged coastline, yet still directly in the path of the ocean’s relentless influence, Carmel Road Winery creates vibrant Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon and Sauvignon Blanc that captures the essence of this remarkable region and California's coastal vineyards.
We were drawn to the area two decades ago, attracted by the combination of cool, foggy nights and warm, sunny, days that ripen fruit to perfection. Once thought too cool for vineyards, Monterey is now considered one of the premiere growing regions in California. Our sustainably farmed vineyards stretch across windswept benchlands, where the maritime climate and well-drained, alluvial gravel soils produce highly expressive wines. The first vintage of Carmel Road wines was released in 1999.
There’s a back road that stretches from the town of Carmel by the Sea, traversing the Arroyo Seco and through scenic gaps in the Santa Lucia hills, connecting the inland growing region to the ocean. This winding trail was the inspiration for our name, our own Carmel Road.
Winemaking
We’ve tailored our viticulture and winemaking techniques
to capture the compelling character of this windswept area.
Carmel Road offers unique Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Sauvignon Blanc from Monterey and a limited offering of bold Cabernet Sauvignon from select coast vineyards through California's wine country. Our wines are known for their rich flavors, firm acidity and brilliant varietal flavors. But it is the pronounced minerality that sets them apart from their peers throughout the Golden State.
Our hands-on methods begin in the vineyards, where individual rows and blocks of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir are picked separately based upon soil types, exposure, clones, rootstocks and ripening patterns. The wines are vinified using classic Burgundian techniques, including cold soaking the grapes before crush, open-top fermenting in both stainless steel vats and small French oak barrels, and the use of cultured as well as wild yeasts. The wines then are aged primarily in French oak barrels of varying toast levels.
Together, our harvest protocols, clonal and rootstock combinations and barrel regimes give our winemaker, Kris Kato, more than a hundred unique lots from which to create his final blends.
Kris Kato, Winemaker
Winemaker Kris Kato grew up in Portland, Oregon, where he developed “the beer bug.” But the fermentation science program at Oregon State University led him down the path of winemaking. He’s worked at Central Coast wineries large and small, and notes both experiences prepared him for his role at Carmel Road, where he focuses on Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.
“Pinot expresses itself more than any other variety, in terms of being nuanced-driven,” Kris says. He’s excited to be working with Monterey fruit, including from the winery’s Panorama Vineyard. “I love to make small lots of wine from different parcels. It’s incredible to be able to choose the most distinct wines from the vineyard and showcase them in different bottlings.” Kris is the father of twin daughters, who keep him busy when not at the winery. He also enjoys cooking with his wife, Jennifer. “I’m a foodie,” he grins, adding, "But the kids take up a huge portion of our time!"
